The Children's menu at The Botanist, Newcastle

I had a feeling my husband and children would love The Botanist as much as I did but I'm always nervous when I take them somewhere new that I have raved about. However it turns out I did not need to worry and I'm pleased that our visit last weekend exceeded all of our expectations. The Botanist in the afternoon has a lovely family feel to it - in fact in the area we were seated almost all of the large rustic style benches were filled with families of all generations enjoying Sunday lunch together - there is even room for a pram or buggy at the end of some tables and highchairs were freely available (don't worry if you prefer a child-free area, there were plenty of these available too should you wish for a more grown up experience).

We had booked using The Botanist's 50% off food in January deal which is valid for Sunday lunch too so decided to go for it and order a full three courses.

To start, we opted for a deli sharing board - you can pick four items from a good selection for £9.95. We selected roasted peppers, parma ham, scotch egg and couscous. Our platters were served with flatbreads and the portions were just right.

The staff at The Botanist went out of their way to make us feel welcome - engaging not only the adults but our children in conversation too. They asked if we wanted their meals brought out with our starters too which always gets the thumbs up from us.

Children's menu at The Botanist

The Children's menu was original, quirky and lots of fun. You can order two courses for £5.95 which is an absolute bargain. The main course options included scampi with chips, sausage and mash and chicken fingers with chips. On a Sunday you can order a smaller portion from the Sunday lunch menu too. Our 8 year old ordered the children's burger and chips where as our two youngest decided to go for the chicken fingers.

We loved how the meals were served and a lot of thought has clearly gone into the design - I always appreciate it when children are made to feel important and aren't just an after-thought. Their main meals included tomato ketchup served in miniature wheelbarrows, salad leaves sprouting from dainty watering cans and beans served from individual plant pots. Genius! The portion sizes were fantastic too - there are not many places where children would be served two burgers rather than one and all of them couldn't finish their chips.

The fun continued with dessert as they were served seaside style ice cream in a bucket with a spade replacing a spoon. Their ice cream bucket was buried in a mini sand pit filled with edible sand (biscuit crumbs) and decorated with sweets. This is definitely the best dessert our children have ever eaten.

Remember - children's meals are only £5.95 for two courses!

Sunday Lunch at The Botanist

Sunday lunch is priced at £11.95 for a main course of chicken or roast beef placing lunch at The Botanist on the mid-expensive end of the price scale. Remember, you are in the centre of Newcastle and on a Sunday afternoon live music is played in the main bar area. All of our food was delicious and we had no complaints so I personally think this price is more than justified.

We both ordered roast beef and asked for it to be served pink (which it was). When it arrived there was plenty of succulent beef on our plate which was served with a gigantic homemade and delicious yorkshire pudding, lots of gravy, homemade roast potatoes, a generous portion of stuffing, horseradish sauch and a side dish of mixed vegetables. The portion size was perfect and we just had enough room to squeeze in dessert (but that was all we ate for the rest of the day).

Desserts are priced at £4.95 each - we both ordered sticky toffee pudding which was nice and light and the perfect way to round off a lovely meal.

If you think The Botanist is all about the cocktails - think again. There is a completely different scene on a Sunday afternoon and we loved it. I would certainly recommend for a family gathering. It's very rare I visit the same place twice however this is now the third time I have visited The Botanist and it has only been open for a month. Every visit has been wonderful and I can only imagine it will go from strength to strength, especially in the warmer months when the roof terrace will be the place to meet up for drink.